Rome (Italy). On 12 July 2025, in Rome, at the headquarters of the Roman Province of St. John Bosco (IRO) in via Marghera, a meeting was held between the Presidents of the Italian Federations of Past Pupils of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, the World Confederation Mornese, and the FMA Institute, with the participation of the Mother General, Sister Chiara Cazzuola, with the aim of growing in communion, strengthening the union between the Federations, and collaboration with the Confederation.
The account of Emilia Crosignani, President of the Holy Family Federation of Milan:
Upon our arrival, the joyful welcome, in the family style, made us feel at home and expected. We were welcomed by the Confederal President, Maria Carmen Castillon, by Sister Leslie Sandigo, General Councilor for the Salesian Family, with the World Delegate, Sister M. Sahaya Sangitha Rani, by some Confederal Councilors, and, to our great joy, by the Mother General of the FMA Institute, Sister Chiara Cazzuola. Sister Gabriella Garofoli, Provincial of the IRO Province, and the Delegate of the Roman Federations Saint Agnes and Saint Cecilia, Sister Emilia Di Massimo, also took part in the meeting.
The meeting began with greetings from Mother Chiara, who began by saying that “she prays for us and has always accompanied us” and that sharing this day with us was born from the desire to “feel our sensitivities”. She therefore recalled the sense of belonging, which arose from the intuition of Fr. Philip Rinaldi, who had thought of creating bonds between Past Pupils who could continue their educational and formative journey.
“We are always united in the charism and in the same spirituality that we carry with us and communicate it without proclamations.” This creates unity and makes us one. She continued by saying, “the Past Pupils are emanations of the FMA; they are the ‘long arm’. Secular women who arrive in the world where the FMA do not reach.” From her visits to the works in Lebanon, marked by the difficult history of coexistence and conflict, as well as in Mozambique, she noted that the closest are the Past Pupils, alongside other groups of the Salesian Family. She went on to urge, “One must find oneself in the sign of hope and a simple exercise but one that produces a great effect is that of listening. We live by listening. If we don’t listen to each other, there is no path.” Here, then, is her wish for the day, “May this be a day of sharing and listening without worries. Sharing to improve the journey.”
Mother Chiara’s greetings were followed by those of Maria Carmen, who encouraged participation which “is courageous discernment and dialogue.” “We must”, she continued, “be put in a position to understand, question, and contribute. Participation is mission-driven, rooted in responsibility, active, and is expressed in the joy of service and commitment to valuing others. And in all of this, we must never lose sight of the source of our identity.”
She therefore recalled our origins, “We exist because the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians formed us, educated, us and believed in us. The values that the FMAs have transmitted to us are the heart of our existence and our mission.” She concluded with this wish, “May this meeting be a space for reflection, animation, clarity, and renewed commitment. Let us walk together in communion, with transparency, responsibility, and harmony so that our Federations can flourish in unity and in the joyful realization of our shared mission.”
During the prayer, in the invocations to the Holy Spirit, which accompanied the construction of a beacon of light, we asked to rediscover the freshness experienced at the origins which is “reproposed today as the beacon and charm of the climate of Mornese, in the simplicity of life and relationships, in ardent love for Christ” the source of life, of freedom and hope “and in missionary audacity” so that we can be with our testimony “a beacon of light, of hope, of solidarity where we are, for today’s world.”
At the end, the consultants of the TERSA company spoke, called to conduct the day’s activities. This company, specialized in consultancy for the non-profit and third sector, has received the assignment from the World Confederation of FMA Past Pupils for support in analyzing the needs and aspirations of the Italian Federations, as well as to define paths of collaboration and development.
Initially, in order to foster a collaborative climate, a team building activity based on the experience of active listening was proposed. This communication technique proved to be effective in involving all participants, improving relationship, and creating empathy. Following this, a specialist lawyer in the field, Nicola la Triglia, presented a report to outline the formal and legal framework within which we move. Through the comparative analysis of the statutes of the Mornese World Confederation and the Mornese Onlus Association, he presented some slides starting from some questions on the nature and potential of the Association.
Many interventions and many questions for clarification placed particular emphasis on the relations between the World Confederation and the Mornese Onlus Association with reference, mainly, to the position of the Federations as “members” of both entities.
In the afternoon we addressed the topic of the expectations/needs of the Federations towards the Confederation and the coordination between Italian Federations. Four themes emerged from personal reflection:
- Communication and listening (knowledge of skills, exchange of experiences, paths and journeys together as a place where ideas are shared, paths shared to be an association knowable and known in synodality as the union of all realities, to be strong in the proposal);
- Charismatic identity (charismatic dimension, growth in awareness of one’s charismatic identity as an element of aggregation and interests);
- Autonomy in a responsabile way;
- Transparency (quality of relationships, in communication, circularity of information).
Starting from the assumption that this reflection is aimed, for each of us, at being present in society due to the charism we carry, we were prompted by other questions (How do we expect to work together? How do we live in the context we are in? Why are we together? We walk together to…). The next step, consequently, was to ask ourselves “what goals” we intend to achieve.
Three goals emerged:
- Give continuity to the Association (aggregate new Past Pupils);
- Mission (impact society with our presence in everyday life);
- Grow in communion with each other while respecting diversity.
These preliminary steps are an orientation to understand what type of statute to give us as Italian Federations and how the Italian Federations can be present in this process.
At the end of the day, Mother Chiara greeted us by recalling the Christian virtue of patience, which is also the basis of Salesian educational action, as education requires time to build meaningful relationships. She invited us to “safeguard all the beautiful things experienced today and leverage this for our journey. May the Lord help us and bless us. May Mary teach us fundamental patience for the journey.”
The day was an opportunity for direct and clarifying discussion lived in the freedom to express oneself with spontaneity and sincerity in an atmosphere of respect, patience, listening, and friendship.
